Gottfried of Viterbo

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Gottfried von Viterbo (Latin Godefridus Viterbiensis ; * around 1125 in Viterbo ; † around 1191/1192 or shortly after) was an Italian historian and Latin poet of the Middle Ages.

Life

Gottfried von Viterbo came in 1133 under Lothar III. to the Bamberg Cathedral School and under Konrad III. he served the royal chapel . He was a notary and court chaplain at the Hohenstaufen court under the emperors Friedrich Barbarossa and Heinrich VI. and in this function was instrumental in the signing of the Constance Treaty between the later Emperor Barbarossa and Pope Eugene III. involved (March 1153). He made extensive trips through Europe, which took him to Rome more than forty times . He was also canon of the cathedral in Lucca and Pisa . He was no longer able to realize his intention, expressed in the Pantheon around 1190, to settle in the city of Würzburg , which he praised .

reception

The historical and literary value of Gottfried's works is often rated as low, since his historical research is considered to be inadequate and in some cases flawed. On the other hand, Gottfried was able to report a lot from personal experience, and he also referred to sources that have been lost today . He mixed his poetic, anecdotal reports with elements from legends and fables , which made them more entertaining and popular with a relatively broad class. So is z. B. his pantheon has been preserved in more than forty manuscripts.

In his writings, Gottfried proves to be a supporter of the Hohenstaufen dynasty and supports their goal of a comprehensive empire, but nevertheless remains a balancing act between church and empire.

The historian Friedrich Hausmann identified the notary of the royal chancellery Arnold II. C with Gottfried von Viterbo.

Works

The Speculum regum Gottfried von Viterbo in the manuscript written in 1250 Munich, Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, Clm 28330, fol. 8r
  • Speculum regum 1183.
  • Memoria saeculorum seu liber memoriale (Memory of the Centuries or Memory Book), 1185 (attempt at a complete world history).
  • Liber universalis , ca 1187.
  • Gesta Frederici (Acts of Frederick), 1155–1180.
  • Pantheon 1187-1190.
  • Pantheon, Sive Universitatis Libri. Qui chronici appellantur, XX, omnes omnium seculoru [m] & gentium tam sacrasquam prophanas historias complectentes ... Iam primum in lucem editi, acc. rerum & verborum ... ind. Oporinus / Parcus, Basel 1559 ( digitized edition of the University and State Library Düsseldorf ).

Edition

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Willy Schmitt-Lieb, Wilhelm Engel : Würzburg in the picture. With a foreword by Mayor Franz Stadelmayer . Wisli-Mappe, Würzburg 1956, pp. 7 and 10.
personal data
SURNAME Gottfried of Viterbo
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Godefridus Viterbiensis
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Historian and poet
DATE OF BIRTH around 1125
PLACE OF BIRTH Viterbo
DATE OF DEATH around 1192